NEW YORK-STYLE CHEESECAKE WITH FRESH STRAWBERRY TOPPING Recipes

Cheesecake is one of my great loves. Given the choice between it and a myriad of other desserts, I will choose cheesecake everyday and twice on Sunday. I’m sure you’re not too terribly surprised, seeing as how I bombard you with more than my fair share of cheesecake recipes. I just can’t help it; I’ve been head over heels in love with cheesecake for as long as I can remember. While I’ve given you recipes for things like brownie mosaic cheesecake, fig almond cheesecake, pumpkin cheesecake and peanut butter-fudge cheesecake (among many, many others), it dawned on me that I’ve never shared a recipe for a straight-up New York-style cheesecake. No fancy embellishments, just a humble graham cracker crust with a sky-high cheesecake filling. This is a cheesecake purist’s dream.

INGREDIENTS:
For the Cheesecake Crust:
8 whole graham crackers, broken into pieces
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the Cheesecake Filling:
40 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature and cut into 1-inch pieces
1½ cups granulated sugar, divided
⅛ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 egg yolks
6 eggs
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
For the Fresh Strawberry Topping:
2 pounds strawberries, hulled and cut into ¼-inch slices (about 3 cups sliced strawberries)
½ cup granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup strawberry jam
2 tablespoons lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

• Make the Cheesecake Crust: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 300 degrees F. By hand or using a food processor, crush the graham crackers into fine crumbs. In a medium bowl stir together the graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Pour the melted butter into the bowl and use a fork to toss the mixture until it is evenly moistened. Transfer the crumbs to a 9-inch springform pan and press evenly into the bottom of the pan. Bake the crust until it begins to smell toasted and starts to brown around the edges, about 13 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cook while the filling is prepared.
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